Mrs. Potato Head

Remember these fun characters? I loved giving them mismatched limbs and upside-down noses.

My lovely '07 Toyota Corolla has a name. Mrs. Potato Head. Why, you ask? (laughing, and hopefully somewhat concerned)

Last spring, I was snowboarding with a friend at A-Basin and lost my right rear hubcap somewhere between the parking lot and Denver. Potholes, mud and mountain altitude. Still haven't replaced it, even though there are many shops nearby my house.

This summer, with my dear friend Meg from Chicago, I was driving home from the bar one night off South Broadway and my right side-view mirror popped out. Not going into that... but the plastic component is still there, totally fine. Just missing a mirror. Those are not hot commodities on amazon.com. Salvage yard says they don't have them. I am going to check out a different salvage yard, with a different approach.

On the way up to the mountains, we were coaching my lovely car up the hills and to Breck for a weekend of shredding the gnar. We talked about car names, and that I didn't have one. It came down to Mrs. Potato Head or Betty Davis (looks old, but acts young, maybe had a stroke on the right side...) Both were so great!

How on earth did it come to Mrs. Potato Head? You really wanna know?

A pedestrian ran into my car, at dark, with his dog. He and his dog are fine, by the way. They took out my driver's side mirror. It shattered. His fault.

Can 2011 start already?

memories of SA

Big moment - and big air

I had a big moment this weekend. It was enlightening and so encouraging. We are studying Proverbs at Fellowship Denver right now and Hunter, one of our teaching pastors, delivered the message right to me.

Proverbs 13:20 Walk with the wise and become wise,
for a companion of fools suffers harm.

We can't choose our family but we can choose our friends. Our friends help to shape us and influence our habits, mindsets and attitude toward life. If we choose wisely, we become wiser. I can be closer to leading a Christian life. Sounds easy, doesn't it?

How many fools have I been around? Chosen as my friends? There are times where I am the fool, too. I recognize that. What constitutes a fool? What characteristics did I recognize that I don't want?

Jesus walked with the tax collectors; he choose to be friends with the 'wallflowers' because he knew his wisdom was contagious. The wise can rub off on other people. It is when we choose to not be wise and follow the foolish that we are led astray.

I am so glad that these simple truths can guide my life and my choices can be more deliberate.

So to all my friends out there - thank you for being wise people. You are in my life because you influence me in a positive way and I am grateful for your wisdom. I hope I can rub off a little on you sometimes...

MARATHON 10/7/2010

I placed 745 out of 2900 runners; 56 out of 330 in my division (F 25 - 28) and 201 out of 1350 for all women. WOW.

My chip time: 3:57:13. I loooooove it. I am so happy with my time - and overall place. My goal was a 4 hour marathon, a 9:09 pace. Well, I beat that and average a 9:00 min mile throughout.

My race splits: 5K: 27:34, 10K: 55:11; 13.1: 1:56. Phew... I felt so strong and confident 99% of the time. The damn 8th ave bridge, or whatever bridge that was at mile 23/24 was awful. I wanted to just stop. It wasn't the Wall. It was just torture (maybe, then.the Wall?). To be honest, my legs and arms were kicking the whole time, I didn't hit the Wall. When those last few hundred yards were called out, some sort of adrenaline shot zoomed through my whole entire body. The feeling was out of body. I heard someone yell, "nice kick!" And it was! I was like Speedy Gonzalez on crack. It was awesome. Thanks, Mr. Mills, for all those sprint intervals in high school track practice. It worked. Those kicks are my *secret* weapon these days!

The weather was gorgeous; 41 @ the start but in the 70s at the finish. The course was wonderful. Through city park, cheeseman and wash park. My parents and family friends were in to watch; Jerry even ran the last few miles with me and was a very accurate pace runner. Thanks Jer!

I am exhausted and my legs are SO incredibly tired. Walking was so difficult all day afterward. As I am sitting in bed now, my legs are just screaming out, "give me some love, some TLC and some ice." Well, I will take a few days off... then they are back to work. Maybe I'll give 'em the week off.

Can I tell you why I love to run? I ate the most flavorful, satisfying burger, fries and a drank a sharp-tasting pale ale this afternoon. Then I had Fro-Yo. Of course.

Next up: to qualify for Boston, I need a 3:40. Well, that is 17 minutes. If I do some speed work and continue my mileage, why not? My adrenaline is talking right now so I'll sit on that thought. Rock N Roll Phoenix? hmmm

let's see what the legs say tomorrow...

running adventure

I just don't want to forget today long run. Squeamish - don't read on.

It was my first run where I have failed. My stomach was upset so I stopped at a gas station, a Mexican Baptist church and a ghetto food store, named Food Store.
We had a man run with us for 5 seconds, we ran through the ghetto in Aurora where cops were patrolling the neighborhood.

We ended up at the Aurora medical center, ran through some park and headed down peoria.

That is when it got interesting. We were running down a major road - definitely not a good park of town. We should turned left to get to ILK road but nope. Ended up on Smith road. Denverites - this is not a road to run down at dusk. Or ever.
Katie asked me - is that an airport tower up ahead? I knew we weren't near Simpleton nor DIA so we didn't know what it was.
You know the signs where they say don't pick up hitchhikers? Yup, we were running right toward the Denver correctional facility.

Now, I was not feeling so great. Katie threatened me - don't stop here Jaclyn. Just don't need to go to the bathroom right now. Oh, I wanted to sprint right past. Not only were we at the jail but it is across from a rail yard. Spooky.

Luckily we got out without seeing any hitchhikers or criminals on their yard break.

I felt so sick we ended up cutting our run short, calling a cab from a wine store. that's a first.

I wanted to run, to feel quick and powerful. I love clearing my head on long runs. Too bad I only got in 12 miles today. Next time. I need to figure out better foods to eat so I don't feel so sick.

Marathon is coming up so soon. Yahoo!

Blue Man Group on Global Warming

Temple of the moon

Man, I just really love this. This place was called templo de la luna - Temple of the Moon. Legend has it this is where the Incan people would study the stars and moon. No one really knows. My theory? It was so tough to get to - descending from the main temples and living area to get to the Big Rock - and then descend that one, that this was a place of solace. Or a party spot for the workers who got shafted by the big-wigs.

Whatever theory works for you, I know for me it was breath-taking and inspired me to connect to what was going on in my heart and body. Yoga helps me find balance and allows my mind to play out slowly. If you know me, you know my mind runs on two planes at once. I felt so insignificant at this spot but also so valued.

Machu Picchu.
verano 2010

Coffee Shops

I love Hooked on Colfax because it is the neighborhood place to go... 2 blocks from my house and I can have some of Pablo's finest coffee.

The reason I really like it (aside from the fact that I met my good friend Krista there, she's a barista there) is that it inspires me. The coffee or Bhakti chai provide the brain juice for me, the environment is comfortable and artsy and the people that frequent the place are fun, outgoing people. Us regulars start to spot each other, the baristas know me and I have made friends with a few of them!

You know how some coffee shops are quite and a bunch of students treat it like a library? Uck -that is too much. Then there are places where space hasn't been defined so there are kids everywhere, loud chit-chat groups and a few trying to work quietly. Awkward. Hooked has done a great job creating a space for everyone.

The Bluebird folks come in, chat it up; the salon clients and hairstylists are common coffee drinkers, ladies out after a morning aerobics class hang out with a cup of joe, medical students cram in large amounts of information and Teach for America folks write lesson plans and grade papers. You've got people playing crosswords at the counter, someone drinking a beer at 2 in the afternoon on a Saturday and others out for their first cup of coffee. The Bhakti Chai, made in Boulder - is out of this world. Spicy and enough kick to boost your day. So good.

Today, I didn't really get much Algebra planning done for the week. I had an awesome conversation with this guy who is trying to prepare for medical school applications. We swapped travel stories, our passion for running and even a little family background. He had this awesome running log going and I am inspired to try one but not sure if I can be as dedicated to one. Maybe I'll become invested in it once I start to see my progress.

Moral of the story - I am becoming a common thread in the Denver 'hood and loving the life of a coffee shop junkie :)

Marathon Training and teaching kiddos math

The new teaching position started this past week. I am now teaching 9th grade math at Denver School of Science and Technology, an open-enrollment charter school in Denver. They have 100% of their first three graduating classes accepted into 4-year colleges, including Stanford and other major colleges. I'm pretty pumped to be in an environment of highly-driven, data-driven educators that develop the teacher.. who then lead students on their journeys.

Marathon training and teaching? Oh yes....

I set a goal for myself: run a marathon in 4:00 hours or less. I am training and sometimes running is the exact opposite of what I want to be doing. When I knew I had to run 4 miles today, I thought... man, I just don't feel like it. But I knew it was a small step in the bigger picture. I had a BIG goal, a 26.2 mile goal that needs to be achieved. I have high expectations for myself and I also don't want to let myself down. I am my biggest competitor. Plus, I am training with a friend and she relies on me to meet our mile per hour goal.

In my classroom... we look at our math learning goals and through some manipulation, we set a class goal. What should our average be on test? 80%? 90% 35%? If a teacher set their goal at 35% they are in the wrong place... or have tenure.
There are days when I see students trying to hide behind a teammate's back or avoid eye contact. There are days where students give off the "don't even mess with me today" look. And it is convincing. Not enough to deter me. I am relentless.
Why? Why do I allow myself a day off from a 4 mile run but don't let Maria take 20 minutes off of a 75 minute class period?
Perseverance. I suppose it is easier to set goals for someone else and hold them accountable. But I need to model what I want to see from them. Hopefully by making my marathon training goals transparent to my friends..and even those lovely, energetic and often rebellious teenage students, I can hold myself to a high standard and exceed my goals.

There is nothing more beautiful than seeing a student reaction to their amazingly successful test scores.
student, "Is that my score?" "is that what you gave me?"
teacher, "gave you?" " you EARNED that!"
student, "I have never gotten this high of a score in math. I did this?"
teacher, "you worked hard, and you practiced. that is your well-deserved score."
student, "miss, I think I get it. I know what I need to do now."

LOVE IT. I had a student share a story quite like this with me last year. She had NEVER earned passing test scores - why she was moved up grades, that is a public policy decision by our lovely and talented politicians. She experienced success in math for the first time in 9th grade. After that, she continued to work hard and persist, continuing to make improvements and rise to the expectations she set for herself. Sure, she experienced setbacks but that taste of earning high grades was fueling her ambition.

Marathon runners should be teachers. If you don't run, get out of the building. only kidding.... you can be a cyclist, or a swimmer, or a golfer (maybe)...

Setting goals. It changes lives :)

South American adventures

My travel buddy!

Back in October or so, Liza mentioned taking a trip to Peru to visit Machu Picchu. Well, I had been waiting for the chance to return to South America ever since the day I boarded a LanChile flight back to Chicago. We chatted a few times about the trip, in passing and then came a week in January or February where the talk turned into action. We devised a plan - go to Peru, Argentina and then end in Chile. We did not really think about geography and the distance between Lima and Buenos Aires. Or the fact that southern Chile is enveloped in rain and snow during the winter months. We actually did not plan anything other than our flights and we knew we were going to take Spanish classes in Buenos Aires.

The trip turned out beautifully. We were in Cuzco during an old Incan gods festival, Inti Raymi - Festival of the Sun. The festival takes place the week of the winter solstice, when the sun is furthest from Earth. The Incans sacrificed an animal and called for blessings on their crops and animals. The festival is still huge today. We were in Machu Picchu on the largest and most important date but we were in Cuzco for the days following the winter solstice. As we were enjoying an espresso at a cafe on the Plaza de Armas a large group of people starting parading around the plaza with signs, banners and music. Within a few minutes we realized it was a Christian parade and they were celebrating Jesus! It was a beautiful thing to see. In the midst of their traditional cultural event where the Incans worshiped a sun god, the Christians spoke up about the one true God, our Savior.

To me, seeing a Christian parade in Peru was inspiring and an act of true faith. The Peruvian heritage is Incan and Spanish conquistadors. The family tree includes branches and branches of Incan blood but Jesus was revealed to them and now the Christians in Peru have a cultural history that includes the intelligent and advanced Incan civilization, lost to the world mixed with the one Truth, Jesus Christ.

Back to Liza... she is an AWESOME traveling friend! For 35 days she survived my craziness. Thanks Liza for the idea and your positive energy :)

South American adventures

El lago escondido - The hidden lake

This is one of the many marvelous views I came across on my mountain bike trip in Bariloche, Argentina

South American adventures

On my mountain bike adventure, I came across this beautiful sign along the pass. The short bike circuit I did was in Bariloche, Argentina - part of Patagonia. It actually was not that short, it took about 4.5 hours of constant climbing up and then cruising down. Instead of being in my Spanish class, I was biking up and down mountain roads, no trails - alone, and in the cold. Biking is so rewarding because after a big climb the cruise down feels so freeing.

Anyway, for those of you that want a translation...
"Where there is peace, there is culture (community)...
Where there is community, there is respect
The planet is part of who we are and we are all one
The peace is the path
Love, the answer.

Peru 2010

Ruins in Pisaq, Peru

South American adventures

I hiked up my first 14er this weekend.

For people living in Colorado, hiking or climbing the 14ers is a part of saying you live in Colorado. If you live here long enough, you'll say you've climbed 10, 11 or more of these famous peaks. Why the excitement?

There are different classifications of the peaks and the one we did was a Class I - easy. It is 7.5 miles round trip and took about 5 hours total to summit and return to the campsite. Class III is the most difficult to summit without gear and Class IV and V require gear - climbing gear. Eventually, I hope to get strong enough to complete some IVs. I am going to stick with Class I and II for now - why not, right?

The beauty of hiking to the summit is the change in scenery as you ascend. Starting in a forest and then hopping through a rock jungle and then just hard rock and ground at the top. Another great part - hiking with friends! I went camping outside Breck with 3 new friends that I have met from my new church, Fellowship. Great people! One of the guys with us has just moved to Colorado a few weeks back so he jumped right into what it means to live in Colorado.

A little crazy but I ran a little over 13 miles the day before this hike - not suggested, by the way. My legs were dead and I was drinking a lot of water at the beginning of the trip. Luckily, that 2nd and 3rd wind kicked in with the adrenaline and I steadily moved up.

Living in Colorado is a dream. The mountains, the people and the adventure are snapshots of a deeper meaning to living here - I feel like I am discovering more of who I am here than I have in other cities where I have lived. What I like is knowing that there are no limits.... only the ones we set for ourselves. Here, friends push me to expand my limits and go beyond my comfort zone.

I love living here!

South American adventures

In a nutshell...or an empanada

Friends are asking me to highlight the best part of my trip. How do you highlight a trip as diverse as the one we just experienced? As I try to pop out the 'best' memories, the trip marinades slowly and richer meaning starts to fill my heart and soul, just like the aroma of a good Malbec wine, flavor appears slowly and suavemente.

In Peru, the best by far was being on the top of Huayna Picchu, or the big rock. It is the rock that oversees all of Machu Picchu and only 300 people a day are allowed to summit. There were about 40 - 50 people en route, at the top and coming down when we were ascending. The sense of self in a place that magical is undefinable. I imagined the hundreds of Incans who were responsible for the labor, the planning and revising of such a gigantic construction project. We think we have these beautifully built structures in downtown cities but compared to the purposeful and intricate construction at Machu Picchu, we are building Lego houses.

I felt so close to God when I was on that mountain in the middle of a huge forest. His world is beautiful and designed with a purpose. His world is beautiful - I met amazing people at the top of that rock and all of us were floored, enamored and deeply moved by the magic at the top of that mountain.

Then... Buenos Aires hit me like a 90 mph fastball. The European buildings, sugar and cakes everywhere, the Malbec wine from Mendoza, dancing until 7 AM and the friendly people. I am definitely going back! The fashion... the shoes.... the people are just gorgeous!
I met great new friends in Buenos Aires and that is the best experience. International friendships are a work of art. To come together in someone's second (or third) language and laugh, tell jokes, share stories on ex-boyfriends, adventures and international love is deeply moving. I made great friends in Buenos Aires - from Brasil and Colombia - we live in such different places but we are experiencing similar stories. I just love laughing at jokes in Spanish, sharing stories and exchanging secrets - but now, we wait until someone visits the other country. It is hard, making great friends and then leaving within 1 or 2 weeks, sometimes a few months later. Thankfully, we have facebook!

Brasil - 2014 for la Copa!

Chile... oh Chile... how my heart swells when I remember your oceans, the faces of the children at Hogar de Cristo and the humility I learned while living in a place where I did not understand basic conversations. I am hanging on to the memories of studying in Santiago and the travels throughout the country like an infant holds onto their blankie. My world improved because I was exposed to truth and another set of cultural values and expectations. We live in a diverse world and to have the opportunity to cozy up in a corner of the world for a few months... lead to some great revelations.

I travel the open road... healthy free, the world before me, leading where ever God has planned for me...

Chile

The long awaited return to Chile. Five years ago my life took a turn for the better when I studied abroad in Santiago. Now, I am here again with my friend Liza, traveling como mochileras, to see this country in the wintertime.

Today is our first day of nasty weather. We are in Villarrica, the sight of the gorgeous Volcan Villarrica and in the land of the lakes. The air is covered in rain so we can´t see the volcano. We are heading out on a night bus to Santiago.

We crossed the Argentina'Chile border by bus...and that means we didn´t have to pay an entry fee into Chile!!! So when you travel by bus in South America, you escape the fee.

Bariloche ended up being a calm, relaxing week in comparison to the wild, sleepless party in Buenos Aires. Our host family was so great. Caro, our host mom, is a young mom with two beautiful girls. Since we were there during the Argentina 2-week vacation, the house was full of her friends that were in Bariloche for the week. The school was shit so I went 2.5 days. We learned more with our family than at the school. Caro´s boyfriend, Agustin is a great chef and cooked great food everyday for us. I have some great photos of us making empanadas (I will definitely make them in the states) and teaching liza how to open a bottle of wine the right way. Actually, I have a great video of that!

The best part of Bariloche was an all day bike trip I did by myself. I left school early one day and went on a Short Circuit bike trip around some lakes. The trip was difficult because there were a lot of hills. The views were preciosa and maravilloso - just unbelievable. Bariloche is very similar to a mountain town in Colorado but it has these amazing lakes. Colorado is missing the lakes - or else it would really be perfect. Barioche was FULL of Brasilians so I definitely learned to understand Portuguese. That will come in handy when I go to Brasil for the 2014 World Cup.

We also went to Villa la Agostura which is close to the Chilean border. Beautiful town!

The skiing in Bariloche was not that great but definitely worth the trip. We had a blast because of course, we were off track and snowboarded down some ATV trail! WHOOPS. The lifties thought that was hilarious when we asked them where we had been. Only crazy Americans would go through trees that were not marked.

The Argentinian people are beautiful - inside and out. They eat dinner after 10PM which is a little crazy, go out dancing until 5AM and drink little Italian coffees with more sugar than I usually consume in a year. Will I be back in Buenos Aires?

I met a woman that teaches in an IB high school outside of Buenos Aires and they are always looking for native English speakers because her school is bilingual. High school math teacher in Buenos Aires? Maybe one day....

Bariloche

A small mountain town in Bariloche, Argentina. think Breckenridge, but developing country with awful pollution and dogs living in the street.

then add the majestry of the ANDES mountains and the most beautiful blue lakes nestled at the base of the mountains. This mountain town is international and breath taking throughout the whole day. As the sun moves, blues, greens and pinks transform the skyline into postcard images.

Right now there are more Brasilians here than Argentinians and I just heard English for the first time today... I have been here for 5 days.

I went to an amazing restaurant in town, opened for 6 months now, Sesamo. The owner, Ari, is Israeli and moved here 7 years ago. Many Israelis travel throughout South America for months after the obligatory military service. He came down, loved it and moved to Bariloche with a good friend from Israel. They opened a hostel in El Bolson, a neighboring community, and know has about 100 beds. They opened the restaurant -Middle Eastern food in a country where the only food is pizza, pasta and meat. Thank you to Ari for opening a slice of heaven in Bariloche. The food is spectacular. I like to think that I am a good judge of Middle Eastern food and the hummus - jumus in spanish - is amaaaazing. I could eat there pretty much every meal!

The Rocky Mountains are the best skiing in the Americas. I can say that now that I have skied in South America. Pretty sure there isnt skiing in Central America so I have tried it all (almost). Vail is #1 for sure! Aca, the snow is like sugar but with a hell of a lot of ice. The mountain is big but there is no elevation so the runs are pretty short. The best part, our hilllllarious expedition into the trees that left us on a 4x4 trail in the middle of the mountain, literally off the ski map. of course we walked through an ATV trail and rode down part of it. Of course.

We had fun but I am counting down the days until opening day in the Rockies.

Off to Chile in a bus on Sunday....

argentina

Buenos Aires.

GO! Plaza San Martin and its center of the city feeling, go to a tango show and learn to dance the tango in order to go to a milonga and dance with an argentino. I did not have the confidence to do this but so many friends feel in love with the tango.

Milion. A restaurant that is hidden off of avenida Sante Fe, inside a gorgeous building with a small courtyard garden with tables outside. Upstairs,a sophisticated bar and wacky, creepy art with lots of knives. Weird.

The city parks are full of families and young teenage couples. What a sight!

Denver and Buenos Aires share a common characteristic - everyone has a dog. The dogs are so well trained; portenos walk their dogs on busy streets without leashes and the dogs stay within 4 feet of their owners the whole time. But the people are irresponsible and don't pick up the dog poo. Not okay.

If you enjoy fashion - clothes, shoes and hair - BsAs has something for you! The shoe stores along the main drag Santa Fe show off impressive heels, flats, boots and great purses. So many amazing shoes.

Buenos Aires

Where do I begin?

The party never stops in Buenos Aires. The first night here I was out until 5 or 6 AM, dancing and drinking. The salsa and reggaeton are SO FUN to dance to, I need to start a club in Denver for Latin dancing. It could be the next big thing. Anyway, I had class at 9 AM and I am pretty sure that for 2 of the 5 days of class I arrived with less than 5 hours of sleep. Each day, our profe asks what we did during the afternoon and at night and I just look at him...do you see the sleep in my eyes? But we are having SO MUCH FUN!

I am learning Portuguese. I can understand 80% of a conversation between Brasilians because I live with 8 Brasilians and there are so many at the school. I have even learned a few phrases. We had a party at our house - I live in a house with 10 or 11 people from our Spanish school - and I gave a hostess speech, my opening line was in Portuguese. Some of the people at the party thought I was from Argentina because I was speaking in Portuguese and Spanish. A dream come true for me.

Last night I was mistaken for Argentinian as well because people from our Spanish school did not think I spoke English. Hell yeah! Argentinians know I am not a porteña but they do recognize my Chilean accent and Chilean phrases.

Buenos Aires is a city for night people. I never consider myself a night person, but here we start the party around 11 or 12 at night and the clubs, called boliches, start filling up around 2 am. How do people do this!? I am loving it right now.

Last night we were at this place called Las Brujas and it is a salsa, merengue and reggaeton club. On a Tuesday night, it was packed and full of partiers. Beautiful man and a DJ that sings great songs.

Of course... the hotties are plentiful.

peru

machu picchu is a dream world. the fact the incans built this huge sustainable fortress at the top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere is phenomenal.if you think about how long ago they were there... 1400s or so (right?) they built a dream city for thousands of people. the kings ate fresh fish every day because they had hundreds of runners down to the river. hundreds. liza and i climbed to the top of hyuana pichu and it overlooks all of machu picchu. all of it. the steps were built to withstand infinity. our own construction in the developed world lasts a generation, or less.

are we a developed civilization if we lack structures and systems that withstand our lives? i think so...

the incans also had water filtration systems and disposal systems integrated in the mountain. machu picchu is on top of the world, the feeling of climbing everest must be close to the one i felt but with a lot less danger involved!

peru is a country full of culture, history, spanish influence and friendly people. i felt so safe in every city we visited and i loved the people. they are happy, smiling and proud of their history.

more on the great food, photos and life in buenos aires soon!

Extreme Community Makeover

Thanks to Confluence Ministries in Denver, our church - Fellowship Denver - was able to work with the neighborhoods along West Colfax to spruce up some yards and alleyways. Let me tell you, it is hard work to clean up an alleyway!

I was lucky enough to be a part of a great group of people - Emily, Hunter, Jonathan, Mark, Tom, another Jonathan, Patrick, and then many more were part of the Alley Clean Up Crew - you all ROCK! I was really grateful to spend time with H; he leads our worship most Sundays and it was great to get to know him as a person. I am very blessed to have found a church that focuses on our relationship with Jesus and then our role in our community. As I meet more people and learn more about the church, I am excited to build relationships within the community and grow as a Christian with this awesome body of believers!!

Belle was the star of the day - almost 90 years old (this September). We cleaned up her yard, gutters and painted her railings on her porch. I enjoyed being on the roof of the house, cleaning gutters and cleaning out overgrown branches. All the work my Mom had me doing in her gardens prepared me to clean out Belle's rose gardens. She has great rose bushes but they were definitely in need of some care. She was such a sweet old lady; all her family is coming in this September to celebrate her birthday. She was so adorable, hanging out with us outside and making cute jokes. 90 and still a firecracker.

Fellowship Denver definitely is starting to grow on me...

p.s. I got a tattoo...

leading wherever you choose....

As I prepare for my summer trip, I am thinking about all the wonderful pieces of Denver that I will miss this summer. Weird, I usually love to leave the city for vacations. But I never want to leave Denver. There are always 10 things to do in a day.

Nevertheless, I am STOKED for this trip. I studied abroad in Santiago in 2005. Ever since I left, I have wanted to return. Luckily, my friend Liza mentioned a South American adventure and that was all I needed. She barely finished her thought and I was on board for 35 days of traveling through 3 (maybe 4) countries this July.

Why do I love the memory of South America so much?

I learned patience and I learned humility from the people of Santiago. I also saw the value of family life and taking care of each other with no questions asked. My host family took me in and I was instantly a daughter, sister, cousin and niece.

There was no clock in our house and I distinctly remember Day 1 and freaking out because I didn't know the time. By the time I left Chile (no pun intended :) I was living on South American time. No time. Take the moment and live in it and allow life to move you like waves move in the ocean. I still don't wear a watch. My sister is the planner and she is punctual and likes to plan based on time. I think she gets frustrated with me because I don't see time like she does. love you Ash

One more thing. The Andes mountains remind me of how small I am in this world. Sure, the Rockies are big. But the Andes engulf you and protect you. They stand majestically like the guards at Buckingham Palace - fierce and picture-perfect.

Look for photo uploads and stories of bus trips, great eats and new friends.

weekend adventures

it is only fair to say that Denver is the best city I've lived in. Thus far. There might be a city sometime in the future that aligns just as well with my lifestyle, but for this moment, Denver hits any criteria I would consider important.

Ashley is in town this weekend - still here, as I sit at school administering final exams - and we hit this city up for everything it's worth.

Friday was First Friday, where art galleries open their doors and their hearts to the public for free, usually with some bubbly at a small table in the back. Ashley and I checked out some great artists. One of them really caught my eye. John Fielder is a photographer here in Colorado. His prints make me feel like I am standing in the midst of the snow, on top of the mountain or right next to the aspens. I can feel the fresh mountain air. Now if I only had an extra $4,000 to buy and mount a gorgeous photo in my rental house.

We also discovered Tribe Tattoo. More on that topic later...

We went to the People's Fair in downtown Denver where artists from all over Colorado and a few out-of-towners set up shop and sell their goodies. Ashley was amazed at the number of people in tattoos and the quantity of pet dogs accompanying their owners. If you want to live in Denver, you've got to ride a bike or own a dog. Or both. I've got the single speed/fixie for now. If you need a dog-sitter, I'll gladly offer my services.

We went to Lola where my lovely friend Charles is the sous chef and man, he can COOK. I love Lola for so many reasons: the downtown view of Denver, the bar is gorgeous, the open kitchen and the tequila. Oh, the tequila is marvelous. Such a good pairing with my flavorful ceviche and seared tuna. Head to the Highlands if you are in Denver and want to experience the BEST restaurant in this town!

We hiked the Flat Irons on Sunday. Check out the webcam! In true Colorado summer fashion, there were drops of sparkling rain along there was only 1 lonely grey cloud amongst the crystal blue sky. The Flatirons were stunning and the hike was a breath of fresh air.

To finalize the weekend, we started summer with Jazz in the Park. In City Park there is free jazz each Sunday from 6-8pm. If you are a Denver resident and haven't gone, get over there on Sundays! We made red and white sangria and had people over from Fellowship and other friends. I made some great new friends this weekend. Gotta love Denver and its amazing people. I am so blessed to be around great people. We had quite a good time; the sangria bowls were pretty much licked clean.

Summer - how I love thee :)

MIchigan Adventures

Memorial Day weekend has its significance but this year was more powerful than any other year. My Grandpa Karnowski passed away this year and he was a humble, quiet man who was devoted to his family and his very close friends. He was still serving a major role in an organization until the day he died. He was a war vet - WWII Navy - and this year the Memorial Day festivities celebrated his service. There were 5 families that were honored at this year's Memorial Day service and 2 of them were family friends of my dad growing up. The fighter jets flew over our memorial just as my own Grandma was receiving a plaque honoring her soldier.

We also celebrated the wedding of our close family friend - a cousin without sharing DNA - you know who those people are - and it was 90 degrees at an outdoor wedding. It was GORGEOUS! Morgan and Pat were both radiant and looked so happy together. What a great wedding!

In one weekend, we celebrated with newlyweds and also celebrated the honor and service of my late grandpa.

Family is everything :)

May & snowboarding

Arapahoe Basin is open until early June.

Here's the math on that: first day up riding was in November, a few weekends in December, all of January and February (minus a weekend for a fabulous friends' wedding) and multiple days in a row in March. April brought 2 weekends, including my birthday weekend at Vail. Epic. It had been 4 weeks and I was in withdrawal.

The past few weekends flew by and I have no idea what I did in Denver. I remember friends asking me about places to go, things to do. All I knew was the trip from Denver to Breck/Vail/BV Creek took about an hour and half to two hours.

So when Chris asked if I wanted to go A-Basin this weekend I jumped for joy! The first ride down brought me right back to center. The missing element in my life was fulfilled. Even though it is May and I've been running in a tank-top and shorts in Denver, there were 7 newer inches in the past 3 days. In May.



Final bit of math: I'll be on a snowboard 8 months out of 12 this year.

July. Argentina. Let's ride!

Salsa & Summer

Our staff had a BBQ this afternoon. All the teachers, their families and a few more friends spent all Saturday afternoon outside. The crazy Denver rain left in time for the sun to come out for our BBQ party. The theme: Guac-Off. Two of our creative minds came together and planned a salsa & guacamole competition. Who could make the best salsa &/or guac?

No bribing and all present were able to cast their votes. After eating about 1/2 cup of salsa and probably consuming no less than 3 avocados, we cast our votes. A landslide victory for best salsa - ME! I have never made salsa before but I took a recipe from the lovely food network and changed it up a bit.

It was a grilled pineapple mango salsa but I made sure to use a whole serrano pepper as well as 1 whole green pepper, part of a yellow and green pepper. The recipe also would have resulted in chunky salsa but I threw the ingredients in my blender. Long story - my food processor decided not to work today. I have no idea what happened.

All in all, a great BBQ! We've got 4 weeks until summer vacation. Which means....

5 weeks and a few days until I am out of here and on the airplane heading to South America!

Denver Marathon 2010: Update

It is official. I am running the Denver Marathon 2010.

Sunday, October 17, 2010 at 7AM.



Katie and I are signed up and picking out our training program soon. Any suggestions?

New Running Goal: Marathon Dos

Alright, I think I am committing to it because I am publicly sharing my goal. Marathon 2010: Denver's Rock N Roll in October. My friend and colleague Katie and I have been talking about it and she vocalized her idea of running the full; we were going to run the 1/2.

My friend Sarah has run quite a few since she jumped in with me for a few miles in the Chicago. I am definitely inspired by her dedication to training and her focus :)

My previous marathon training experience was exceptional. I joined the AIDS Foundation running group and met the most wonderful, vibrant new friends. We ran together each week over the course of the training program - 6 months. I had SO much fun running that we would run 20 miles and think, wow - did we just run for 2.5 hours? Really? I was the youngest, and one of the only straight people in my group. So these gentlemen were anything but vanilla. Our conversations were one for a comedy skit!



As I start to commit to training, I am thinking of a few things..
waking up really early in the summer and early fall to run for 3 hours
eating a lot of bagels and whole wheat pasta
the running belt
gatorade
new playlists to keep me going!
all the running trails and paths in Denver and Boulder to explore!
The runner's high. Oh, how I love thee

Let's do this! Now - my trip to South America will include lots of early morning runs and I am pretty sure my cross-training will include the tango and playing real football

Denver Marathon 2010.

Ok Go

Wednesday night, 2 blocks away from my lovely house in City Park is the historical Bluebird Theater, and it rocks.

Ok Go was a blast! It felt like we were listening to a rock band out of a garage, I felt like we were friends. The red suit, pink pants - all ironed very neatly, too - and then the lit-up guitars with white feathers around the strap and guitars. Great stuff! They even sang a blues song while playing church hand bells. took me right back to the Lutheran church. So this kid, probably 17, did a drum cover of one of their songs, "This Too Shall Pass," and the kid was at the concert last night. The band brought him up on stage and the kid played the drums for the song! SOOOO COOL. Small venue concerts are the best. Plus, it was a free ticket.

Now, how am I going to get through today's classes with energy? A night out on the town has its repercussions....

Bikram

Went to my first Bikram yoga class last night with my friend Krista. I am a believer and feel transformed. After running and weight lifting I feel strong and healthy but nothing like I felt after the Bikram class. It was my first time, so I was watching the girl in front of me - and she was good - but the poses were easy to attempt because the teachers words were direct and simple. Good teaching is good teaching. I'm definitely going back. Yoga memberships are expensive though! $69/month!!! So worth it in my book. We were at the only certified Bikram studio in Denver; apparently the teachers have to study with Bikram himself and have over 700 hours of practice before opening their own studio.

I loved it. I felt strong, healthy and secure. Such a great workout. The heat wasn't even that big of a deal, considering I lived in Phoenix where temperatures are in the 90s and 100s most of the year.

If you haven't tried Bikram, make it a 2010 goal. I hope you will feel as empowered as I did. Problem is, I couldn't fall asleep because I was so energized from the 90 minute sweat session.

teaching

I don't normally share what happens in our algebra classroom. But today, I will.

We are multiplying binomials - remember FOIL? And my students, who have struggled graphing straight lines and still forget negatives times a negative is a positive are rockin' out multiplying polynomials. It was amazing. They had an 'exit ticket' yesterday which is 6 problems to solve in the last 10 minutes of class. Grades usually follow a pattern but this time, the pattern was transformed. I saw students earning 100%s and over 100% (there was a bonus question). Normally, there are 2-3 100% papers but there were like..20 out of 60 students with 100s. AMAZING. There were another 20 or so with As and just as many with B+ on their exit ticket! I was SO impressed and excited. Multiplying polynomials is no easy task but they rocked it out. I can't wait to see what happens when I introduce the quadratic formula soon.

I am SO proud of my Class of 2013 :)

Dinner Parties

My not-so-secret Superwoman ability: throwing fantastic parties and playing hostess

I used to think that most climbers were assholes. Last night I was proven wrong. We had quite the climbing dinner party last night and I had a blast. Before the party began and I was prepping in the kitchen (more on the menu later) I realized I would not know the majority of people at the party. There is some sort of ethereal power that comes from hosting a party that inspires me to chat with as many new people as possible, making them feel comfortable and welcome in my house. Image a tree of happiness, shaking its leaves all over the party. I love that the good vibes of old and new friends, mingling and making new friends, permeates and energizes a room. That's a good get-together.

Is there anything better than the mixture of good friends, great food, drinks flowing and rockin' music?

Lauren is the baker and I played chef. Our dishes were flying off the platters. My new friend Ken cooked up some venison stew. YUM! As a Michigan girl, you would think I would have tasted such a thing before but I had not. Ken, the venison brought me back to my roots. I made some mini-burgers: turkey burgers with feta, serrano and cayenne pepper and chicken burgers (I know, right?) with mushrooms, serrano and feta. Those didn't make it from the platter I was carrying to the table. They were awesome. I think they were so good because so much love went into those little buggers. Plus the awesome apron I was wearing (thanks Tot). And Lauren, she amazes me. She made these chocolate cupcakes with a mocha frosting and a berry tart. All we had left in the kitchen this morning were a bunch of empty beer bottles. You know its a Colorado party when every single beer is a microbrew from Boulder, Ft Collins or Breckenridge. Wow. We should throw dinner soirees more often.

Sure, the food was a great component of the dinner party. And someone even commented that this was the best food he had had at a dinner party. Hell yes! But the people. The new friends I have made and continue to meet in Denver just amaze me. So many share the zest for life and exploration, being silly and laughing. Good times!

As we sat outside taking in the fresh Colorado air, I realized that I absolutely love Denver, Colorado. It is the perfect city for me. Why am I so lucky?

Smile on my face :)

The seemingly random, small things in life happen to have the impact of an impeding avalanche. They just burst into my life and BAM! a smile is created. Maybe that is why I am annoyingly happy the majority of the time. I see the minute details of a day's events as the ones that count.

For instance, two weeks ago I bought a coffee grinder and French press. No more of this buying coffee at Dazbog or Starbucks. Or so I thought. I pulled out of my driveway (steep angle - this is important) and drove down the alley to the road, this is a full block, mind you. When I was about 1/2 block out of my alley, I reached for my beautiful green coffee mug. It was not there. Here is my train of thought that followed: Oh shit. Where is my coffee? In the kitchen still? Oh no. Oh no. laughter follows. a lot of laughter. I placed it on my trunk. REVERSE THE CAR! End of my thoughts. Where was the coffee? Spewing into the road, at the end of the alley. At this point, I was so impressed that the coffee mug had traveled down the driveway and the full length of the alley only to fall when I turned into the street. There it was, my freshly ground coffee that smells of fresh blueberry pancakes, seeping onto 16th Avenue. Oh, Monday mornings.


Small, seemingly random event #2:
The trees of China Bowl at Vail. I can't even begin to explain the sheer joy that I feel when I reach China Bowl. I don't ever need to go to China because my idea of China is defined by Vail's back bowls and it is wonderful. Well, maybe I'll still go to China someday but I think my image of China is going to be centered on the sharp curves around tightly packed trees. These trees grew knowing that a snowboard would hug their curves and allow boarders and skiers to use them as leverage on a narrow turn or as a base for resting when legs are burning up.
Let's talk about spring skiing. There is this thing called the sun. And it warms up the packed powder enough to make it mushy and like a pillow. Flying through that just makes my day. I hit up Eldora - it was alright through the tree runs, Vail (of course) and Breckenridge this weekend. "Breckenwind" was icy and not nearly as great as Vail. But it was a day of snowboarding and I got to practice riding goofy and hitting the rollers. I took a bad fall but it was SO FUN. Slip N Slide has NOTHING on cruising down a semi-icy groomer.
Breck, from the Peak 7 gondola:


#3. After a morning of snowboarding, I headed back to Denver where it was 65 and sunny. I ran about 4 miles in a tank top and t-shirt. This is my life and I am definitely in the right place. Gotta love it.
My house is always open to visitors... just saying.

Snow

As I sit at Hooked on Colfax, gorgeous March snow is falling down in big, puffy flakes. I can't get enough of this white, airy stuff. "This is why I live here," is a slogan seen across Denver and throughout Colorado. It's a quote that is repeated so frequently I think there is a bumper sticker. There has to be. If not, I am on that. And it would be the one and only bumper sticker I would ever put on my car. I'm not a fan of the overly decorated car with multiple bumper stickers, many of which highlight the driver as some extreme idealist or extreme Republican. If my car were magnetic, I'd throw some magnets on there because my mood and thoughts change too much to have permanent ink on my car.

So much has been happening in my life that I haven't had a chance to brain dump my travels, experiences, wild stories and fears in a while. Warning: there is not a focus to my writing, it's a "lluvia de ideas," in English - a downpour of ideas.

Snow. I love it and live for it. I've been up to Breckenridge, Vail and Beaver Creek so much this season; Vail is now my home mountain. The snow at Vail is to die for. I could die happy after riding through China Bowl all day. Next topic: China Bowl.God has created a beautiful country and such a pristine maze of trees up there. I feel like I am experiencing something so unique to me, only shared with the man upstairs, and that feeling is empowering and spiritually charging. The last time I was up at China Bowl, I made my own line down through the trees for about 5-10 minutes because there was so much fresh powder and uncharted area. My snowboard was gliding like I was riding through buttery sugar. Then, I stopped. There was too much powder. Luckily I stopped - I was on the edge of a cliff that dropped straight down and at the bottom was green run. That run was really far down; if I had to estimate the distance, it was 20 feet or so. Too far to jump for this kid! I had to trek out and eventually take off my board to walk out for a while. That was exhausting and tiring. Eventually I made it down to a green run, was exhausted and sat on that chair to recharge. The man next to me heard me telling my cliff story and was cracking up. He is someone to look up to - living in Vail for 40 years and skis over 100 days a year. WHAT!? I have been up to ride enough to lose count; I long for the year I can live and ski, live and ski. He made that ride warm up with a shot of whiskey! Oh, to be wealthy enough to ski for a living. How can I get paid to do that?

Vail. In a nutshell - powder, bowls and so much terrain you can't do it all in 40 years (as told to me by a man who has been living there for 40 years).



I feel renewed every time I leave the mountains and head back to Denver on the 70. Denver is such a great city that coming back down is okay; I know I can head back up to Breck, Keystone or Vail for a weekend or a day's skiing. The vacation never ends when the snow is so close. What am I going to do when there is no more snow!? Yikes!

Well - one thing I will be doing - running 5Ks and 10Ks in and around Denver. I ran the Running of the Green today in Denver. The weather was awful; below 30 degrees, cloudy and overcast because it was about to snow. Yesterday was in the 60s and sunny. Spring is here! Plus, the resurgence of Denver Cruisers and the Wednesday Cruisers rides will be awesome!

Oh - and I am heading back to South America! Por fin!
June 22nd - depart for Peru, Machu Picchu and then off to Buenos Aires, Agentina and Bariloche, Argentina. We'll end the trip in Santiago, Chile. 35 days of la pura vida.

We are Family. All my sisters and me!

Rough week last week for my family - the Karnowski side. Luckily, my sisters all showed such amazing support. I am so lucky to have developed such strong friendships throughout college. These girls have become lifelines and are truly reliable and dependable sisters. How am I so lucky to have such fabulous friends?

Do all people have such a strong network of women - or men- that they can rely on for anything, no matter where they are in the world? How is it that we find the right people to fit into our own lives, and that we fit into their world? I am just fascinated by the physiological connections we make that transcend time and place.

I sometimes wonder why certain people stick in my memory, even though their time was fleeting. And. What is it about an event or action that causes us to index it into a filing cabinet upstairs?

I seem to remember simple, seemingly mundane things about me and my sisters in college. Amanda and I would sit and drink coffee, eat grapefruit and watch those cheesy morning talk shows during the hot summer days of Chicago. That was right when I came back from South America and didn't want to be in the States. She let me just be myself, never judged me and accepted the new me. Still love her for being so supportive during that pivotal re-entry time.

This past week I could have easily felt so alone and out of place. I did for a few moments. But even though I was not sitting next to any one sister in particular, I could feel their love and support through their calls, emails and beautiful flowers. I found hope in the strength of my sisters.